The four outfielders acquired by Atlanta in 2021 after the mid-season ACL tear suffered by Ronald Acuna, Jr. are available again as free agents – and likely to appeal to the team in its search for an established left-fielder.
Adam Duvall, who already had two stints with the Braves, is a former Gold Glove winner whose best position is an outfield corner. But he won’t budge Acuna Jr., who is favored to win National League Most Valuable Player honors next week, or center-fielder Michael Harris II, a 2023 Gold Glove finalist.
Jorge Soler, another right-handed hitter, isn’t as accomplished defensively but showed the baseball world his power when he won World Series MVP honors for the ‘21 Braves.
Fun-loving Joc Pederson, remembered for distributing strings of white pearls to players during Atlanta’s winning post-season and to fans in the victory parade that followed, would not only bring left-handed pop but a personality that would help keep teammates laughing and loose.
And then there’s Rosario, the 2021 NLCS MVP, whose $9 million club option was declined but does not prevent him from returning with a reworked contract. Like Pederson, he bats left-handed and could be part of a platoon.
According to Front Office Sports, the Braves signed fewer free agents (3) and spent less in free agency last winter ($3,015,000) than any other team.
That could change after Chairman of the Board Terry McGuirk told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the team is likely to hike its payroll for the third straight season – even if it means paying a luxury tax.
J.J. McCarthy would have to throw a few hundred passes Friday just to close one gap between him and the other top quarterbacks in the NFL draft.
Of course, that type of rubber-arming is not going to happen, and there won’t be a defense on the field.
But McCarthy’s workout at Michigan still is one of the most interesting on the national Pro Day circuit — especially for the Giants — because scouts are craving more exposure to the fast-rising prospect,
The more times you can see something, the more comfortable you get with it — how it comes out of his hand, the totality of the arm strength, the velocity. I want to see him move a little bit because that offensive line at Michigan was really good. There weren’t a lot of times we saw him move out of center and throw on the go.”
The Giants, who are in the market for a young quarterback because of Daniel Jones’ long injury history and his contract flexibility in 2025, are expected to send at least one high-ranking scouting executive to Ann Arbor, Mich.
Where it once was crazy to think McCarthy could be selected as high as the Giants’ No. 6 pick, it now seems that is the floor for his projections.
“What started the rise for me was that when they had to put it on him, he stepped up,” Miller told The Post. “There’s not a lot of it, but the Ohio State game and the national semifinal game against Alabama were the two best games he ever played. He performed in those big moments.”
McCarthy already met with Giants’ brass at the scouting combine and on a top-30 prospect visit to the team facility. His intangibles — namely, intelligence, communication skills and maturity — have left a strong impression on multiple teams, two league sources told The Post.
The 21-year-old proven winner (27-1 record) can boost his stock further Friday by throwing the ball with accuracy to his left side.
SEE ALSO
Joe Schoen, J.J. McCarthy, Daniel Jones
On throws of 10-plus yards outside the numbers during his career, McCarthy completed 56.2 percent with a 205.4 quarterback efficiency to his right compared to 42.6 percent with a 144.2 quarterback efficiency to his left, according to Yahoo.
“I thought at the combine that he really had a hard time throwing to his left,” Miller said. “It was … like, ‘He’s really a different player throwing to his left than his right.’ That’s not a mental thing. That’s a physical thing you can work on. I want to see if he has fixed the mechanics on throwing left.”
Quarterbacks have never made up the first four picks of a draft class, but Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort revealed Wednesday he is fielding offers for No. 4 in case this is the first.
Would Ossenfort be enticed by a small trade package from the Giants, because he only would have to move down to No. 6 and still could land an elite receiver prospect? Or is he looking for the multiple first-round picks that the Vikings (No. 11) or Broncos (No. 12) would have to include to trade in front of the Giants?
“I think you are going to have to move up [from No. 6] to get him,” Miller said.
Quarterbacks tend to get over-drafted by needy teams.
The difference between McCarthy and Maye or Daniels near the top is seen as smaller than the difference between McCarthy and late-first or second-round quarterback prospects Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. in most league circles.
Fri 10:56 PM
You sent
As Alabama football continues its spring practice period, Kalen DeBoer made it abundantly clear that Jalen Milroe is in the driver’s seat as QB1. His comments about the quarterback position indicate a firm plan forward.
However, they raise questions about the rest of the depth chart.
DeBoer, in his first year as the successor to Nick Saban, is going to move forward with Milroe. The redshirt sophomore is the incumbent starter after leading the Crimson Tide to the College Football Playoff last season. That has not changed. He continues to lead the pack.
Jalen’s taken every snap with the ones all spring. He’s just a proven guy who’s done a great job last year. Leading a football team to a semifinal game is not easy. A conference championship, an SEC one at that, he’s just done great things.
— Kalen DeBoer
There is a lot of buzz around the top returning Heisman Trophy vote-getter from last year. Milroe threw for 2,834 yards and 23 touchdowns with just six interceptions on a 65.8% completion rate in 12 games.
DeBoer does not see any reason why he cannot be even better this fall while other talented signal-callers breathe down his neck.
Jalen’s got multiple pieces to his game that he can just really excel at. We have some great ones in the room. Jalen’s certainly been headlining that room and doing a great job there, really taking in the offense, leading. He’s done a great job in all facets and things you’d want a quarterback to do.
— Kalen DeBoer
Barring unforeseen circumstance, Milroe will be the starting quarterback again in 2024.
Where does that leave Ty Simpson and Dylan Lonergan? What about Austin Mack?
An exodus feels inevitable at Alabama.
Only one quarterback can start at a time, obviously. Milroe will likely declare for the NFL Draft after this year, which opens things up for his replacement— if they are willing to wait that long.
“If” is the key word.
Ty Simpson will be a redshirt sophomore this fall. The former five-star recruit’s playing time against USF was one of the most crucial moments of the Crimson Tide’s College Football Playoff run.
Dylan Lonergan, a four-star recruit in the Class of 2023, will be a redshirt freshman. He has plenty of time to develop because his path to playing time is less clear.
However, right behind him is Austin Mack. DeBoer recruited him to Washington as a four-star recruit and brought him to Tuscaloosa as the tallest signal-caller in the group by a large margin.
It seems improbable that all four guys will choose to stay on the crowded roster.
Mack just transferred south. Milroe is the starter. They’re not going anywhere.
Where does that leave Simpson and Lonergan?
We will find out when the next transfer portal window opens in April.
The Birmingham Stallions announced their final 50-man roster for the upcoming UFL season on Friday.
UFL teams had to cut down from 75 players to 58 by March 10, then to 50 by Saturday, March 23. The reigning USFL champion Stallions are set to kick off the season against the reigning XFL champion Arlington Renegades on Saturday, March 30, at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
Here are the former Alabama and SEC football players who will play for the Birmingham Stallions in 2024
Former SEC football players on the Birmingham Stallions in 2024
A handful of former SEC players will join Brown on the Stallions this season.
A pair of former Ole Miss players, quarterback Matt Corral and linebacker DeMarquis Gates, signed with the team on Feb. 13. Corral was drafted by the Panthers in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft and had a stint with the New England Patriots in 2023. Gates won a USFL championship with the Stallions in 2022 and played for the Chicago Bears for the 2022-23 NFL season.
Former Missouri running back Larry Rountree III signed with Birmingham on Jan. 19. He was a sixth-round pick by the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021 and spent some time with the Texans before he signed with the Stallions.
Two former Mississippi State players, tight end Jordan Thomas and cornerback Isaiah Zuber, also made the Stallions’ final roster. Thomas has played professionally since 2018 between the NFL and XFL. Zuber played one season as a wide receiver for the Bulldogs and was primarily used as a punt returner by the Houston Gamblers in the USFL.
Former Texas A&M tight end Jace Sternberger rounds out the group of SEC products in Birmingham. Sternberger was a consensus All-American and first-team all-SEC for the Aggies in 2018. He was a third-round draft pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2019 and was a member of the Stallions’ 2023 USFL Championship-winning team
Leave a Reply